Jenna Ladd | November 15, 2017

Germany and Great Britain announced their pledges of $81 million and $72 million, respectively, to fight deforestation, much of it illegal, in the Amazon rainforest. The rainforest is recognized as a vital region for carbon absorption and a biodiversity hotspot.

Much of the Amazon rainforest is located in Brazil. Some $88 million of the new funds will go to provide financial incentives for landowners in two Brazilian states to maintain forest cover. The new program will also include the state of Mato Grosso, in an effort to curb ramped deforestation making way for the region’s busy soybean and livestock industries, according to a report from Reuters.

Although deforestation of the Amazon in Brazil decreased by 16 percent in the last year, it has not slowed to rates that would allow the country to meet the goals it set as a part of the Paris Climate Agreement.